Abbott, Abe put mining on centre stage

Final day of Japanese PM's visit: Mr Abbott and Mr Abe in Western Australia. Photo: Gary Ramage

Japanese technical know-how and the red earth of Western Australia's Pilbara mining region provided the perfect backdrop for the final day of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Australia.

A day after Mr Abe and Prime Minister Tony Abbott signed off on an Economic Partnership Agreement, the pair left behind a backlash in Chinese state-owned newsagency Xinhua over the Australian Prime Minister's "appalling" speech to Parliament.

Xinhua upbraided Mr Abbott for noting that Australia had honoured the courage of Japanese submariners during World War II.

Mr Abbott, for his part, actually said that while Australia "admired the skill and the sense of honour that they brought to their task although we disagreed with what they did".

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The pair put behind them the tragedy of 70 years ago as they travelled to Rio Tinto's West Angelas iron ore mine, a Japanese-Australian joint venture, to mark a relationship that began in Australia's north west in 1966. Mr Abbott wants Australia to deepen trade ties with Japan and export more of everything, including iron ore, to our second largest trading partner.

Mr Abe, an economic reformer, wants to kick start his country's economy so that it sells more of the cars and trucks - built with Australian iron ore - that serve so ably in mines like West Angelas.

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After a five-hour flight across the country, the pair arrived at the mine soon after 1pm.

Rio Tinto employees whispered excitedly about the "money shot" they'd set up for the visit: Abbott and Abe atop a giant Komatsu 930E autonomous hauling truck, which can carry 300 tonnes of Pilbara red earth.

The monstrous trucks, excavators, diggers and loaders stood side by side like extras from a Transformers movie.

For a moment, it might have been possible to detect a glint in the eye of Mr Abbott, who still holds his truck licence, as the pair climbed the stairs on the big hauler.

Instead, both men posed dutifully for the cameras, Japanese engineering expertise and Australian industry side by side. The desire to grow two-way trade in goods and services - worth $70.8 billion in 2013 and set to rise under the new partnership agreement - was front and centre.

Mr Abbott told the assembled guests that "almost nothing here in the Pilbara would have happened without the co-operation of Australia and Japan".

The joint venture was the result of a historic partnership between the two nations, built on trust that "everyone would be a person you could rely on".

"And that is what I hope will always characterise the relationship between Australia and Japan," Mr Abbott said.

Mr Abe joked that the five-hour flight was "twice as long as our summit meeting" but that it had deepened the relationship.

Mr Abe said that he "prayed and wished" the project - and presumably others to come in the future - would continue to grow the economies of both nations.

Presumably not at the expense of China, which again remained unmentioned.